Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, the Muslim convert who fatally shot Corporal Nathan Cirillo, a 24-year-old father, as he stood guard at the War Memorial on Wednesday morning before being shot dead himself was a man with numerous criminal charges over the past decade who has been called 'mentally ill' by those who knew him.
Born in Quebec as Michael Joseph Hall and raised in Laval, just north of Montreal, the boy lived a life of private schools and nice homes, with a mother who was a high ranking federal employee.
Then, after years of run-ins with the law, he converted to Islam just a few years ago.
A criminal court database shows 13 identified Quebec court records dating back to June 2001 in Montreal involving Zehaf-Bibeau.
He was charged in February 2004 for possession of marijuana and possession of PCP. He pleaded guilty to both charges in December 2004, serving one day in prison for marijuana possession and 60 days for PCP possession.
He also spent a day in jail in March of 2004 for a parole violation and was again convicted of marijuana possession in 2009.
In another case, he received a six-month sentence in 2003 and three years’ probation on a weapons charge, according to the Herald News.
There was also a prior conviction for assault causing bodily harm in 2001 for which he received a suspended sentence and a fine.
His longest sentence was for robbery, possession of break-in tools, theft and conspiracy with a co-accused in 2003, for which he was sentenced to two years in jail and three years probation.
It is uncertain how much of that sentence he ultimately ended up serving.
In 2011, he was again charged with robbery, this time in Vancouver, but served only one day in prison after he pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of uttering threats, and was credited with 66 days in pre-trial custody.
Records show that in the 2011 case, he underwent a psychiatric assessment prior to his conviction and was found fit to stand trial.
One of his friends, David Bathurst, a fellow convert, said he met him at at the Masjid al-Salaam mosque in Burnaby, British Columbia about three years ago.
Bathurst even got Zehaf-Bibeau a job at his family's business, Bathurst Irrigation.
Close friend: David Bathurst (above), a fellow Muslim convert, befriended Zehaf-Bibeau at their mosque and even got him a job, but says he soon seemed as if he might me 'mentally ill'
He said the young man lived in a small and unfurnished apartment, and that while he did not 'at first appear to have extremist views or inclinations toward violence' he 'at times exhibited a disturbing side.'
'We were having a conversation in a kitchen, and I don’t know how he worded it: He said the devil is after him,' Bathurst said.
'I think he must have been mentally ill.'
He cited one time the boy called police to the mosque to confess to a crime he had committed years before.
Bathurst said the boy wanted to travel to the Middle East, and her urged the boy to make sure it was just studying on his mind.
He says the Zehaf-Bibeau told him he was 'only going abroad with the intent of learning about Islam and to study Arabic.'
He was never able to go though, and sources told The Globe and Mail 'he had not been able to secure a valid travel document from federal officials, who have been taking measures to prevent Canadians from joining extremists overseas.'
Bathurst also brought up that Zehaf-Bibeau knew Hasibullah Yusufzai, a British Columbia man, charged under an anti-terrorism law for allegedly leaving Canada to join Islamist fighters in Syria.
He remains at large.
Bathurst also says that after friction with the elders at the house of worship, Zehaf-Bibeauw as eventually asked to stop attending prayers.
CTV News reports that Zehaf-Bibeau's mother, Susan Bibeau, still lives in Montreal and works as a a federal public servant for the Immigrant & Refugee board.
Mother: CTV News reports that Zehaf-Bibeau's mother is Susan Bibeau, who works for the Immigration and Refuge Board of Canada
A look on the Immigration and Refuge Board of Canada site does show a Susan Bibeau, whose title is listed as Deputy Chairperson, Immigration Division.
According to the site, she joined IRB in 1990 as a refugee protection officer, working her way up over her 24 year career.
She holds a Bachelor of Law degree from the Université de Montréal, a Master of Business Administration from Concordia University, and a graduate certificate in business administration from the Public Administration University.
CTV reporter Norma Reid reported that authorities are still looking for her in the early hours of Thursday morning.
His father is a Libyan businessman named Bulgasem Zehaf who once owned a local restaurant, Cafe Tripoli.
His parents divorced in 1999, and there are reports that his father 'appears to have fought in 2011 in Libya.'
Sources describe Zehaf-Bibeau as 'a man who had had a religious awakening and seemed to have become mentally unstable.'
That was not always the case though it seems.
Janice Parnell, a former neighbor of the family, said Zehaf-Bibeau was a typical teen, though one who led a very privileged life.
She said he went to a 'private school' and lived in a 'nice home in a nice neighborhood,' and that the only problem she ever had with the boy was that he 'played loud music.'
She also said he seemed to be an only child.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper addressed his nation this evening from an undisclosed location, condemning this horrific act which he labeled a terrorist attack.
He also told his people that 'Canada will never be intimidated,'
President Obama also spoke about what he called the 'tragic' situation in Canada, saying 'we have to remain vigilant when it comes to dealing with these kinds of acts of senseless violence or terrorism.'
He then added, 'I pledged, as always, to make sure that our national security teams are coordinating very closely, given not only is Canada one of our closest allies in the world but they’re our neighbors and our friends, and obviously there’s a lot of interaction between Canadians and the United States, where we have such a long border.'
Later the same day the President would face a national incident himself when an intruder once again hopped the fence at the White House and made their way towards the residence.
That is a far cry from the boy's last known address in Vancouver, which, according to the Ottawa Ctizen, was The Beacon, a Salvation Army rooming house.
The shooting spree began at 9.52am when witnesses reported seeing a gunman climb out of a car, grab a rifle, shoot the soldier in the abdomen and then run towards Parliament.
Corporal Cirillo was rushed to hospital but later succumbed to his injuries.
Cirillo, a fitness fanatic and animal lover with a young son, was a reservist serving with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in Hamilton.
'Nathan was a good man,' friend Marie Michele told CBC News. 'He would give anything to anyone.'
Ottawa police then received a call at 9.54am that shots had been heard inside the Parliament, while journalists cowering inside said they heard dozens of rounds and could smell gunpowder in the halls.
A shootout unfolded and Zehaf-Bibeau was killed by Sergeant-At-Arms Kevin Vickers, who worked for the RCMP for 29 years before joining the Parliament in 2006. (He is pictured by the Hill Times.)
'I am safe & profoundly grateful to Sgt at Arms Kevin Vickers & our security forces for selfless act of keeping us safe,' said Julian Fantino, Canada's Minister of Veterans Affairs, on Twitter.
The Sergeant-at-Arms is responsible for safeguarding the authority of the House of Commons and providing safety and security of the Parliament buildings and the people inside.
As gunfire erupted in the hallways, journalists and politicians scrambled for safety, while members in the Conservative Party caucus room blocked the door with a stack of chairs.
A parliamentary guard was shot in the leg during the gunfight but is recovering in hospital, according to Globe and Mail reporter Josh Wingrove, who is inside the building.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper was immediately evacuated from Parliament and taken to an undisclosed location.
He had been scheduled to give Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, co-winner of this year's Nobel Peace Prize, her Canadian citizenship today in Toronto, but that trip was cancelled.
The teenage activist took to Twitter after the incident, writing, 'I extend my thoughts and prayers to the Canadian people during this difficult time,'
Scott Walsh, who was working on Parliament Hill, told CBC that he saw a man running with a shotgun, wearing a scarf and blue jeans.
He said that the man jumped over a fence around Parliament Hill and forced someone out of their car, then drove to the front doors of the Parliament building and fired at least twice.
Reporter Jordan Press added that the car - a Toyota Corolla - was parked in front of the building with its engine still running.
A video shot by a Globe and Mail reporter showed RCMP officers moving through Parliament's main hall toward the Parliamentary library, as the hallway echoed with gunfire.
Other reporters inside the building described the panic in the hallways.
'Dozens of shots in parliament,' Josh Wingrove, a reporter for the Globe and Mail, tweeted just before 10am. 'I see a body on the ground outside the library of parliament.
He went on: 'I was in the west wing of the building and shooter appears to have entered through main door on south side, heading north along hallway.
'I heard dozens of gunshots and the smell of gunpowder is heavy in the hallways right now.'
He added: 'One security guard said that it appears one officer may have been shot but we have no way to confirm that.'
Speaking to CNN, Wingrove said it appeared Zehaf-Bibeau entered the front entrance that has 'many armed guards' but no metal detector'.
'If you flash your valid pass, they allow you to go in,' he said. 'This appears to be the entry point [of the gunman] based on witness accounts.'
The RMP advised people in downtown Ottawa to stay away from windows and off roofs as they responded to the incident. The University of Ottawa was also briefly placed on lockdown.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the nation's thoughts and prayers are with Canada.
The lockdown in the Parliament was stopped shortly after Harper addressed the country, though the Prime Minister's location is still being kept secret.
The doors to the Canadian Embassy in the U.S. were locked, while the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa was also shuttered for most of the day.
The caucuses for the Conservative and Liberal and NDP were holding their Wednesday meetings when the incident happened, the Citizen reported.
The NYPD also dispatched additional security to the Canadian consulate in New York City as a precaution officials said
Also in the United States, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers paid tribute to Canada before their game this evening as the entire arena stood to sing the country's national anthem, O Canada.
By Lydia Warren, James Nye and Chris Spargo
